PREVIEW - Why the last GameDay in Rabat matters

The last two games of the 2026 Sahara Conference are more significant than they appear.

As well as determining which team finishes top of the conference, they will also decide which team secures the fourth and final playoff ticket, scheduled for later this month in Kigali, Rwanda.

The first game of the day sees ASC Ville de Dakar (2–2) take on Maktown Flyers (1–3). Three hours later, the home team, FUS Rabat (3-1), will compete against Al Ahly (3-1). 

Here's a breakdown of both matchups:

Maktown Flyers vs ASC Ville de Dakar (15:00 local time)

Maktown Flyers leading scorer Jawad Adekoya knows far too well what he meant when he insisted that the Flyers “need to continue executing well on offense and limiting turnovers. We also need to improve our pick-and-roll defence; if we do that, teams will find it hard to play against us.”

The Nigerian champions are heading into the final day of the conference on a three-game losing streak, having started their campaign with a 76–68 win over the already-eliminated JCA Kings.

Sunday’s game is Makurdi’s last chance to extend their BAL season beyond 3 May and avoid becoming the second Nigerian team since the Kwara Falcons in 2023 to miss the playoffs.

ASC Ville de Dakar, on the other hand, will be looking to avoid missing the playoffs for the second consecutive season.

The winner of the match between Ville de Dakar and Maktown Tigers will secure the final playoff spot in the Sahara Conference.

If Ville de Dakar lose to Maktown on Sunday, it will mean that, for the second consecutive season, no Senegalese team will be present in the playoffs. AS Douanes were the last Senegalese team to reach the playoffs during the 2024 season.

So, what are the differences between the Maktown Tigers and the Ville de Dakar?

In fact, the two teams have more similarities than differences, except that Ville de Dakar are currently on a two-game winning streak after losing their opening two games. 

The numbers show that Maktown averaged 76 points compared to Dakar’s 75; however, the former allowed an average of 85 points, while Dakar allowed an average of 76. 

In terms of field goals made, Maktown converted 29% of their shots, compared to ASC Ville de Dakar's 27%. 

Both teams are led by well-known coaches in the African basketball scene. While Maktown Flyers' coach, Abdulrahman Mohamed, coached Nigeria’s men’s team as recently as the opening of the 2027 World Cup Qualifiers last November, Ville de Dakar's coach, Moustapha Gaye, has held several head coaching positions with Senegal’s men’s and women’s national teams.

Both Mohamed and Gaye have previously worked as assistant coaches in the BAL and are both making their debut as head coaches in the league.

With a combined total of 158 points over four games, Axel Toupane, Solo Diabate and Samba Fall of ASC Ville de Dakar have emerged as the team’s main scoring options.

Maktown Flyers leading rebounder Peter Olisemeka noted that they “will definitely fight until the very end. That’s the plan. We definitely want to make it to Kigali!”

FUS Rabat vs Al Ahly (18:00 local time)

More than just bragging rights are at stake in Sunday's game between FUS Rabat and Al Ahly: the winner will top the conference, which could lead to a more favourable playoff seeding.

As they prepare to meet, both teams have qualified for the playoffs and both have a win-loss record of 3-1, although FUS Rabat have a higher point differential (+57) than Al Ahly (+32).

Al Ahly of Egypt opened their Sahara Conference campaign with a loss, having lost to Club Africain by a single point in one of the most competitive games of the season. Since then, the 2023 BAL champions have won three games in a row, and they are hoping to extend this winning streak when they take on FUS Rabat.

“I feel like we can go all the way and win this season, given the talented squad we have. This group is a combination of good import players and some of the best local players,” said BAL rookie Ibrahim Zahran. 

Meanwhile, FUS Rabat learned quickly from their narrow 67-66 defeat to ASC Ville de Dakar three days earlier, and ended Club Africain’s winning streak in front of a packed arena on Saturday. 

Al Ahly and FUS Rabat have scored an average of 80 points per game, although the Moroccans have limited their opponents to an average of 66 points, while Al Ahly have allowed an average of 72 points per game.

If FUS Rabat lose to Al Ahly, they will finish third in the conference. The same applies to Al Ahly, who need to win to avoid finishing third.

The main takeaway from this matchup is that both teams will take to the court thinking about their playoff seeding. 

The tie-breaker rule states the following:

(1) The rankings of Teams in a Conference will be based on each Team’s win-loss record. Teams with better win-loss records will be ranked higher.

(2) If two or more Teams in a Conference have the same win-loss record across all Games, the Game(s) between such two or more Teams shall decide their respective rankings.

(3) If such two or more Teams have the same win-loss record across the respective Games between them, further criteria will be applied in the following order:

BAL